Watan-Nurhan Shamlakh began preparing to leave the simple tents that shelter her family in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, heading to one of the health centers so that her two young sons and infant daughter could receive the polio vaccine. The disease has reappeared in the Strip after disappearing for more than 25 years.
The young mother told our correspondent in Gaza, Ziad Taleb, who followed her journey from the displacement camp to the medical center that provides the vaccine, “I heard about the spread of the disease in the Strip. I am afraid for my children, and to prevent anything bad from happening to them, I will take them to be vaccinated.”
Despite the difficulties of moving around in an area crowded with displaced people and residents, Nurhan and her children took a donkey-drawn cart to reach the nearest vaccination point for her three children.
Hundreds of families followed Nurhan’s lead, arriving early for the large-scale polio vaccination campaign conducted by the Palestinian Ministry of Health in collaboration with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), UNICEF, and the World Health Organization.
Mohammed Rajab was one of the fathers lining up atGaza Children.
As he rocked his daughter after she received the vaccine, Mohammed said, “In these conditions we live in, with diseases spreading among children, vaccination is very important now to protect our children. God willing, in these days of war, peace will come to everyone.”
Vaccination is proceeding smoothly
At the UNRWA Deir al-Balah health center, UNRWA spokesperson Louise Wotridge was monitoring the vaccination process as hundreds of families arrived for their children’s vaccination.
Wotridge told our correspondent, “Our staff here are ready to vaccinate as many children as possible over the next three days in this first phase of the vaccination campaign. So far, everything is going according to plan. The children are arriving, the families are here, and the vaccinations are going well.”
The UN official added, “The vaccines are stored in individual coolers to protect them from the daytime heat. It seems that calm prevails in Gaza so far. The humanitarian truce continues for now, and this is what we need to carry out this vaccination campaign. We will see how things progress in the coming days.”
“A serious matter”
The vaccination process is in full swing at the Deir al-Balah center, as in other sites providing polio vaccines.
The workers there emphasize that the polio vaccine is safe and does not cause children to develop a fever, through verbal guidance, explanatory brochures, or posters on the center’s walls.
Not only do parents accompany their children, but also grandparents, who are keen for their grandchildren to receive the vital vaccine. Among them was Ferial Abdo, who came with her two granddaughters to receive the vaccine.
Ferial said, “This is the best day for children to protect them from paralysis and disease. Amid the life we live, full of exhaustion, boredom, and complaints, we ask God to ease our burdens and restore things to how they were.”
Everyone who brought their children to this center or others understands the importance of vaccinating their sons and daughters, including Mohammed Abu Jayab, who took his children to the Deir al-Balah center. He stressed that “the issue of polio is a serious matter in Gaza.”
Mohammed Abu Jayab said, “For decades, the disease was not present in Gaza. Now, due to the war, it has reappeared and been detected. This is a danger that threatens hundreds of thousands of children in the Strip, including my own. This vaccination is very important, a crucial step despite the harsh humanitarian and security situation in Gaza. But it seems there are still those who care about children’s lives, even if it is just with a little polio vaccination.”